Ubeo Blog

What's the Problem with Managed Print Services?

Many IT directors, administrators, and facilities managers have heard of managed print services. Managed print service (MPS) providers will take over the management of your print fleet and handle all maintenance issues. Sounds great right? Well...

What's the problem with Managed Print?

Even expert service teams have a hard time managing print fleets that were not designed with a print strategy in mind. The service provider is setting your team up to be disappointed. Here is why:

The MPS provider makes less money when they fix your equipment - When you sign a contract for an MPS provider to service your existing equipment, the service provider has maximized their profit. The more often they service your gear and the more parts they use, the less profit they make. They manage the margins and the only financial incentive is to provide less service. They are not aligned to provide great service and systems that work.

The MPS provider has unknown cost exposure - Taking responsibility of servicing existing equipment is risky for service providers. They have no idea what type of service your fleet had received previously. It is just like buying a car and not knowing if the car has ever had an oil change. The car might run today but need a new engine next week due to lack of proper maintenance. Again, the result is less service, not more.

The MPS provider won't manage your system any better than you - When you have many different models in your print fleet, there are many print drivers and toner cartridge types to go along with those models. Your MPS provider is paid to fix your equipment, but the ongoing management of those print devices is still done by your IT team. That means their time is wasted updating drivers and searching for the right toner cartridge for the device. The headaches do not go away.

So what is the alternative?

Printer Standardization

If you choose print standardization, you'll be amazed at how quickly your entire print environment changes for the better. The process begins with a simple understanding; less is more.

Less models means more PREDICTABILITY - The IT team must keep security and systems up to date to keep your organization safe and competitive. This means at times, the IT team will migrate to new software and hardware systems. The less print models you have, the better planning and predictability your system will have through these migrations. If a problem does occur, the solution will be the same for all devices instead of having to problem solve for each model. The benefit is the users experience less problems and interruption to their workflow.

Less models means more TIME and RESOURCES saved - Most MPS providers do not provide IT support. Whether you have an in-house team or an IT service, you will pay to manage your print devices including updating drivers, finding cartridges, and troubleshooting issues. The more models you have, the more chances your team will encounter issues and the more money you will spend on IT services.

Less models means less USER ISSUES - Another benefit to printer standardization is the ability to easily switch between devices. If "Jane from Accounting" has her usual device fail, she can walk right down the hall to the next device that is the exact same print driver and model. No learning curve! Between your big MFPs and your smaller print devices, a user may only need to learn two or three devices.

Be careful when providers are touting managed print services as the solution to your print fleet headaches. Chances are, they will not be able to live up to the expectations set. Consider a technoloy assessment with DOCUmation and explore the real benefits of printer standardization.